Apartment vs House/Townhouse in Townsville

We're first home buyers with a budget up to $350k in Townsville, aiming to spend $300k. We are looking at the suburbs of Annandale, Douglas, and North Ward / Belgian Gardens. Obviously houses are out of our budget if we're to buy in North Ward / Belgian Gardens.

We've found a 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom apartment we like in Douglas but are a bit concerned about the body corp fees - $9k, most of which I think comes from insurance (have requested a copy of body corp minutes etc.). I've found comparable 3 bedroom apartments elsewhere in the city with body corp fees of $7k - but perhaps these will also be $9k next year, and perhaps the government will step in to help (won't be holding my breath)..

The other option is houses in Annandale / Douglas which seem to have rates around $3.5k for our price range. Not sure what a reliable figure/range is for insurance, but they don't seem to be above $3k.

With those numbers, houses / townhouses seem cheaper in terms of rates / insurance - are we missing something - maintenance? Is there a rule of thumb for how much we should expect to spend on ongoing maintenance for a house?

We're planning to live in what we purchase for the next 4-5 years, so not too fussed on expected rental return during that period. It would be good to build equity in that time and buy something likely to appreciate more than others should prices rise. At the end of 4-5 years we would either sell or rent it out.

If there's too much detail in the questions there - short question would be house vs. apartment for the budget in the suburbs listed.

 

Personally prefer house (land) over apartments

 

House any day...Check out Kirwan less flood issues

 

Plenty of houses in Kirwan and Douglas for 350k. Why not look for a house that needs a reno and complete it while living there? IMO that’s the best way to build equity in Townsville. Make sure you get a quote for insurance before you put an offer in, elders are sure are better then the big names and low set concrete block walled houses will be much cheaper then high sets.